g05 Chapter Contents
g05 Chapter Introduction
NAG Library Manual

NAG Library Function Documentnag_rand_students_t (g05snc)

1  Purpose

nag_rand_students_t (g05snc) generates a vector of pseudorandom numbers taken from a Student's $t$-distribution with $\nu$ degrees of freedom.

2  Specification

 #include #include
 void nag_rand_students_t (Integer n, Integer df, Integer state[], double x[], NagError *fail)

3  Description

The distribution has PDF (probability density function)
 $fx= ν-12 ! 12ν-1!πν 1+x2ν 12ν+1 .$
nag_rand_students_t (g05snc) calculates the values
 $yiνzi, i= 1,…,n$
where the ${y}_{i}$ are generated by nag_rand_normal (g05skc) with mean $0$ and variance $1.0$, and the ${z}_{i}$ are generated by nag_rand_gamma (g05sjc) with parameters $\frac{1}{2}\nu$ and $2$ (i.e., from a ${\chi }^{2}$-distribution with $\nu$ degrees of freedom).
One of the initialization functions nag_rand_init_repeatable (g05kfc) (for a repeatable sequence if computed sequentially) or nag_rand_init_nonrepeatable (g05kgc) (for a non-repeatable sequence) must be called prior to the first call to nag_rand_students_t (g05snc).

4  References

Knuth D E (1981) The Art of Computer Programming (Volume 2) (2nd Edition) Addison–Wesley

5  Arguments

1:    $\mathbf{n}$IntegerInput
On entry: $n$, the number of pseudorandom numbers to be generated.
Constraint: ${\mathbf{n}}\ge 0$.
2:    $\mathbf{df}$IntegerInput
On entry: $\nu$, the number of degrees of freedom of the distribution.
Constraint: ${\mathbf{df}}\ge 1$.
3:    $\mathbf{state}\left[\mathit{dim}\right]$IntegerCommunication Array
Note: the dimension, $\mathit{dim}$, of this array is dictated by the requirements of associated functions that must have been previously called. This array MUST be the same array passed as argument state in the previous call to nag_rand_init_repeatable (g05kfc) or nag_rand_init_nonrepeatable (g05kgc).
On entry: contains information on the selected base generator and its current state.
On exit: contains updated information on the state of the generator.
4:    $\mathbf{x}\left[{\mathbf{n}}\right]$doubleOutput
On exit: the $n$ pseudorandom numbers from the specified Student's $t$-distribution.
5:    $\mathbf{fail}$NagError *Input/Output
The NAG error argument (see Section 2.7 in How to Use the NAG Library and its Documentation).

6  Error Indicators and Warnings

NE_ALLOC_FAIL
Dynamic memory allocation failed.
See Section 2.3.1.2 in How to Use the NAG Library and its Documentation for further information.
On entry, argument $〈\mathit{\text{value}}〉$ had an illegal value.
NE_INT
On entry, ${\mathbf{df}}=〈\mathit{\text{value}}〉$.
Constraint: ${\mathbf{df}}\ge 1$.
On entry, ${\mathbf{n}}=〈\mathit{\text{value}}〉$.
Constraint: ${\mathbf{n}}\ge 0$.
NE_INTERNAL_ERROR
An internal error has occurred in this function. Check the function call and any array sizes. If the call is correct then please contact NAG for assistance.
See Section 2.7.6 in How to Use the NAG Library and its Documentation for further information.
NE_INVALID_STATE
On entry, state vector has been corrupted or not initialized.
NE_NO_LICENCE
Your licence key may have expired or may not have been installed correctly.
See Section 2.7.5 in How to Use the NAG Library and its Documentation for further information.

Not applicable.

8  Parallelism and Performance

nag_rand_students_t (g05snc) is threaded by NAG for parallel execution in multithreaded implementations of the NAG Library.
Please consult the x06 Chapter Introduction for information on how to control and interrogate the OpenMP environment used within this function. Please also consult the Users' Note for your implementation for any additional implementation-specific information.

The time taken by nag_rand_students_t (g05snc) increases with $\nu$.

10  Example

This example prints five pseudorandom numbers from a Student's $t$-distribution with five degrees of freedom, generated by a single call to nag_rand_students_t (g05snc), after initialization by nag_rand_init_repeatable (g05kfc).

10.1  Program Text

Program Text (g05snce.c)

None.

10.3  Program Results

Program Results (g05snce.r)